Gerald Nash (Louth, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I am speaking on behalf of the Minister for Justice and Equality who regrets that she cannot be present due to other official commitments. She is grateful to the Deputy for raising this important matter in the House. She is aware of the concerns about rural crime, burglary in particular. She considers that burglary is a persistent and highly damaging crime, particularly in the very distressing situations where householders may be assaulted by the criminals involved.

Earlier this year, following an urgent review of the overall approach to dealing with burglary, the Minister published the Criminal Justice (Burglary of Dwellings) Bill 2015. This legislation targets repeat burglary offenders through bail measures and provisions concerning the imposition of consecutive sentencing for repeat burglary offending. The key objective of this legislation is to target a cohort of persistent offenders who prey on law-abiding householders and clearly have no concern for the damage and distress which they inflict on others. It is hoped to have this new legislation enacted as soon as possible.

The new legislation will underpin the concerted drive which is now being made by An Garda Síochána against those involved in burglary and other property crimes, which is co-ordinated under Operation Thor. Operation Thor is a new multi-strand national anti-crime operation which will entail a broad range of activities to tackle burglars, organised crime gangs and prolific offenders, as well as working with communities to prevent crime. The Garda approach includes additional high visibility patrols and an increase in checkpoints to tackle criminal gangs using the national road network. Gardaí are also making important use of technology to target suspect vehicles, including automatic number plate recognition, as well as deploying new high powered vehicles for use by the armed regional response units. In addition, a high profile national crime prevention awareness campaign is under way as part of Operation Thor.

The full suite of policing and awareness measures is made possible by the increased investment in policing by the Government, including an allocation of €5 million to specifically support Operation Thor. This follows the investment of €34 million in Garda vehicles since 2012, with 640 new vehicles becoming available this year, as well as an investment of €1.75 million in airborne surveillance technology. In addition, the Capital Plan 2016-2021 provides for a very significant investment in new Garda technology and information systems as well as the ongoing delivery of new Garda vehicles, amounting to €205 million over the lifetime of the plan. Operation Thor is further supported by the decision of the Government to end the moratorium on Garda recruitment, with 550 new recruits having already been taken in and a further 600 to commence training next year.

In regard to the use of CCTV, Garda CCTV systems are planned and implemented on the basis of the identified operational needs and priorities and decisions in regard to these systems are a matter for the Garda Commissioner. Some community based CCTV systems have been implemented in previous years and in this regard the Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government, Deputy Alan Kelly, has recently made an announcement regarding piloting the provision of CCTV in rural areas, to be funded from the Rural Development Programme 2014 to 2020. In addition, having regard to the value that communities place on CCTV, the Minister for Justice and Equality has instigated a review of the effectiveness of the community CCTV scheme in conjunction with the Garda authorities. This review process is ongoing.

On behalf of the Minister, I have outlined the determined strategy she is pursuing to confront and disrupt those who attempt to prey on law abiding householders. All of these measures, including new legislation and targeted Garda operations, will support a robust response to criminals, enhance public safety and provide communities with the reassurance of a visible and determined police force.

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